Byzantines


 * Justinian**- ruler of the Byzantine Empire from 527 CE to 565 CE

The location of Constantinople made it easily accessible by land and by water.

Despite being built during the decline of the Roman Empire, Constantinople achieved success by basically starting a completely new empire. __**Justinian's Achievements**__
 * __Origins of the Byzantine Empire;__**
 * began around 300 CE when Constantine (roman leader) created Constantinople
 * built on the town called Byzantuim- became one of the major cities in the fading Roman Empire
 * had beautiful architecture
 * after Justinian in the 6th century, Greek became the official language- this allowed the scholars to read into the philosophies and literature of the Athenians during the Hellenistic period
 * Constantinople had a strong tax base
 * the city wasn't taken over by the Huns when the western Roman Empire fell
 * Egyptians and Syrians moved into Constantinople and expanded the bureaucracy- also expanded trade
 * the new empire had many enemies including the Germanic tribes to the West
 * Byzantines recruited armies from the Middle East
 * the early Byzantine Empire had constant threats of invasion- were able to fight of Sassanians and Germanic tribes
 * 533 CE, Justinian tried to reconquer territory to the West
 * got help from **Belisarius-** land was gained in north Africa and Italy
 * Ravenna was made into a temporary capital city in Italy- land was soon taken by Germanic tribes- north African territory was also later conquered
 * Justinians attempts to move West only weakened the empire
 * **Hagia Sophia** (Christian church) built during Justinian rule- one of the Christian wonders of the world- an achievement in engineering and architecture
 * Justinian's Law Code unified law, which reduced confusion and united the new empire (codified- written down)
 * many wars created tax pressures and forced Justinian to extortion that led to his death

BYZANTINE ESPIRIT

media type="custom" key="7452063" width="288" height="288" Summary: Document 1 explained justice, civil law, natural rights, and marriages. The very first point made in the document states that everyone has the right to justice. Everybody deserves it. The document goes on to explain the differences between civil law and natural rights. Civil law overrides natural rights. Slavery was legal because the law of the state/nation stated slavery was legal. The laws based around marriages were very specific. Basically, one was not allowed to marry anybody they were related to. It seems like the government wanted to keep the gene pool large in order to keep the society strong. Doc.2- ownership of things among citizens- how to determine who owns what- Byzantines relied on materialism; ownership was important- many laws weren't practical- these laws shaped onwerships of items to reduce dispuutes among people Doc.3- bets and verbal contracts as well as the buying and selling of

JUSTINIAN CODE DOC. 1 media type="custom" key="7454077"

Justinian Code Document 1 Mark- Ups

__**Who were Cyril and Methodius? What did they accomplish?**__ They were Orthodox Christian missionaries. In 864, they were sent to the region of current day Czech and Slovak. They failed because Roman Catholic missionaries were more successful. Cyril and Methodius created a script from their efforts in the Balkans and in Russia. It was based on the Greek alphabet. The Slavic alphabet is still know as Cyrillic. They had success in conversion in the Balkans and southern Russia. __**How did events in the Middle East affect the demographics of the East Central borderlands?**__ Roman Catholicism and the Latin alphabet became popular in the Czech area and Hungary and Poland. This land became a pace of competition by eastern and western intellectuals. After the conversion to Christianity, the region was organized into a series of regional monarchies, governed by aristocrats. Eastern Europe received a influx of Jews who migrated from the Middle East and running from intolerance in western Europe. Eastern Europe's Jews gained strength in local commerce while keeping up with their own religious traditions. A strong emphasis on education set the Jewish culture apart from the rest of Eastern Europe and the world. __**Outline the development of the Kievan Rus-** large Kingdom- began as a trade route__ Scandinavian traders set up military and government in the trading route of Kiev. A local legend, Rurik from Denmark, became the first prince of the Kievan Rus. He was well organized with alliances through the 12th century. Kievan Rus became a popular trading center and the russians were able to visit Constantinople. During the reign of Vladimir I (980-1015), he converted the people to Orthodox Christianity. He helped train Russians to become priests. The religion turned into Russian Orthodox. Yoroslav was the last of the Kievan rulers. He issued legal codification. He built churches and translated religious literature from Greek to Slavic. Russian aristocrats, called boyars, had less political power than aristocrats in the western empire. Yoroslav the Wise tried to create marriage ties to expand relations with other countries. __**What important decision was made by Vladimir I?**__ Vladamir I had to decide what religion Russia would begin to practice. His final decision was to practice Orthodox Christianity because the Byzantines also practiced the same religion. By choosing Orthodox Christianity, both societies could become allies. He organized mass baptisms for his subjects which involved the military. The Russian Orthodox church was soon opened. __**What were some of the major similarities and differences between Byzantium and the Kievan Rus?**__ The practiced religion of Byzantium and the Kievan Rus was a similarity. The Kievan Rus used laws from as a basis for their society. The religions of the two societies were the same, meaning idols were worshiped and the people went from practicing polygamy to monogamy. The Kievan Rus were less organized than the Byzantines politically. Kievan princes tried to create marriage ties. The Kievan Rus also did not follow the system of education the Byzantines used and also didn't use the bureaucratic system created by the Byzantines. __**What factors led to the decline of the Kievan Rus?**__ The decline started from disputes over succession to the throne. Asian invaders made trade impossible to carry out. And trade was a very important part of life. The Mongols invaded Russia and parts of eastern Europe. They easily captured Russian cities. Tatars hated and feared the invaders. Tatars controlled Russian literature. They allowed Christianity to live on. After the fall of Constantinople in 1453 by the Turks, Russia claimed that the east European was on Russia. Eastern Europe became less developed when it was under siege. Western Europe was free from outside control. The Kievan social structure soon disappeared.

The cultural divide of eastern and western Europe still exists today due to conflicts in religion and land. Territories that remain on the line where the split happened are engaged in conflicts over land. Europe is split correctly one side is Orthodox Christian and the other Catholic. Also, both speak different languages. Countries like Poland, the Czech, and the Baltic states did not convert to Catholicism until the 14th century and were on both sides. South Slavs were considered to be Orthodox, but not completely, which causes conflicts because it doesn't have a central religion. Poland, Hungary, and Lithuania were all loosely organized after the post-classical era. The aristocrats in Poland and Hungary helped set rules and limits for them. Poland and Hungary were with Russia more than western Europe because their society did not share a common religion. Because many conquests occurred in the areas, there was no certain way to define the region. After Mongol control, Europeans tried to start over. It was very difficult because of the constant threat of outside invasion.
 * Eastern and Western Europe: The Problem of Boundaries**

__** Chapter Summary: **__ The establishment of the Byzantine Empire was based on the adoption of Roman ideals. The Roman Empire was split into the Eastern and Westen Empires. From there, the Eastern Empire was created into the Byzantine Empire. The Byzantine Empire was often in threat of attacks on their borders. Justinian, Byzantine ruler from 527 to 565, sought to regain old Roman territories. He was successful to an extent. The land was soon taken over by invaders. Justinian accomplished the codification of law. His main goals were to reestablish the Roman Empire. The religion practiced was Orthodox Christianity.